Beer's Actually Better For Us Than We All Thought, According To A New Study

For as long as we've all been born, the general consensus on beer in relation to health has been nothing but negative, as many contributed to big guts and low-functioning decision-making on the alcoholic brew. Fortunately, though, smart people hope to debunk some of that info, as a new study from Penn State University just uncovered some interesting information.

After studying 80,000 participants, the Penn State data actually showed a natural decline of "good" cholesterol in the body in those who had moderate alcohol intake, per HHHHappy, meaning, yep, drinking alcohol may actually be good for your heart.

Researchers followed alcohol consumption and HDL levels for more than six years in this community-based study. They grouped the adults by self-reported drinking status, from never, to heavy drinking (more than one daily serving of alcohol for women and more than two daily servings for men). They found:

HDL levels decreased over time in all participants, but moderate alcohol consumption was associated with a slower decline compared to non-drinkers or heavy drinkers.

Moderate drinkers (men drinking one to two alcohol servings daily and women a half to one serving daily) had the slowest decline - 0.17 mmol/per year.

Heavy drinking nearly eliminated this benefit with only .0008 mmol per year decline.

While that's great news for all of us who like to enjoy a few adult beverages on occasion, it's important to remember the use of the word "moderate," meaning 1-2 beers during each sitting.

And to further get you excited about the prospect of drinking beer more often to, of course, better your health, with many beers containing ingredients with high levels of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and other heart-healthy vitamins, it could help fend of viruses and keep you healthy!